No matter your industry, business owners and managers everywhere struggle with getting the maximum amount of productivity from their team through finding the magic balance of low turnover and highly satisfied employees. But how do you accomplish this in a world full of easy distractions? Here we have compiled some tips on increasing productivity and reducing turnover that can give you the solutions to your problems.

Ways to increase productivity:

1. Lead by example

Nothing brings a group of employees down more than a disgruntled manager. If you want your employees to work hard and have a positive attitude, check in with yourself first. Make sure that you are setting and meeting the standard for how you expect your employees to work, and then they should follow suit.

2. Give your employees a challenge

A boost in productivity may come from simply challenging your employees to do more or work on a more difficult project. Give harder work to employees, and see how they rise to the occasion. You may discover that you have gems of hidden potential within your workforce that you hadn’t seen before.

3. Make expectations clear

Your idea of productivity may be entirely different from what your employees think. Making your expectations clear from the beginning can rectify this discontinuity. And be as specific as possible when you set this down for employees so that there is no ambiguity in what you expect from them.

4. Recognize your hard workers

Put into place a structured system of recognition within your company. This can be anything from a monthly star employee or a quarterly award. Compensation is important, but having public validation that your work is valued and important can go a long way in motivating and encouraging your workforce. Random acts of appreciation are a great motivator, but if employees know they have the opportunity to earn recognition on a regular basis, they will be more likely to strive to reach that goal.

Ways to reduce turnover:

1. Hire the right people

This may seem obvious, but if you take the time to hire the right people the first time around, you can reduce your turnover down the road. When you are hiring, look at the qualities that comprise your most successful workers. Then you can compare those qualities to the job applicants you have in order to find the best fit for your company.

2. Make your pay competitive

Many times employees will jump ship to a similar job simply for better pay. You don’t have to be the highest paying company in town, but make sure you are in the ballpark. Plus any extras you can offer, whether a great working environment or other perks, can help to make up for any imbalance in what you’re able to pay.

3. Encourage relationships

Give employees every opportunity to build relationships with their co-workers and supervisors. This can happen through company events like sports outings, parties or family picnics. If they have strong ties to the organization that go deeper than their paycheck, they are less likely to want to leave.

4. Show the big picture

Help your employees understand not just what they are doing, but why they are doing it. A menial task may start to have more meaning if they understand how their role fits in to the big picture of the project. Also, help them to understand the big picture of your business as a whole. Have open communication and keep them in the know on what’s happening throughout your company. This strengthens their ties to you and makes them less likely to want to leave.